Coin-collector.



P. E. osWALD.

GOIN GOLLEGTOR.

APPLIoATIoN FILED Mn 14, 190e.

1 ,O1 7,454, Patented Feb. 13, 1912 vll/l,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PAUL E. OSWALD, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO WESTERN ELECTRIC COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION 0F ILLINOIS.

COIN-COLLECTOR.

Specification of Letters Patent;

Patented Feb. 13, 1912.

Original application filed March 7, 1905, Serial No. 248,908. Divided and this application led May 14,

To all whom t may concern Be it known that I, PAUL E. OswALD, citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Coin-Gollectors, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description.

My invention relates to a toll box for telephone pay stations, and has for its object to provide an improved and efficient construction whereby coins of less than the proper size intended for use with the box, will, if inserted within the box, be diverted from the mechanism thereof, and transferred to the' refund tray on the outside of the box.

y invention relates to a toll box for telephone pay stations of the character disclosed in my Patent #846,604, patented March 12, 1907 and filed as an application in the Patent Office March 7, 1905, having a Serial Number 248,908 of which application the present application is a division.

In a toll box embodying my invention, the

coin chute, which leads from the outside of the box to the operating mechanism therein, extends in an approximately horizontal direction for a short distance from its mouth, such horizontal portion of the chute being laterally inclined and having one of its side walls cut away, a guide being provided, however, for the tops of proper sized coins placed within the chute, to divert said coins to the interior of the box. A coin of less than the proper size placed within the chute will not be supported at its top by said guide, but will roll off the floor of the chute through the opening in the side wall thereof and be diverted by a suitable guide into a chute leading to a refund tray on the outside of the box, without being turned over or tilted and changing its approximately vertical position. With this arrangement the 'coin chute, guide and refund chute may be located close together to take up the least space. I will describe my invention particularly by reference to the accompanying drawing which illustrates the preferred embodiment thereof, reserving for the appended claims a statement of the parts, improvements and combinations which I consider novel with me. L

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a side eleva- Serial N0. 316,692.

tion of a toll box embodying my invention, with the case in section; Fig. 2 is a partial detail view of the plate forming a wall of the coin and refund chutes. Fig. 3 is a front view of the chute; and Fig. 4': is a sectional view thereof on line A of Fig. l.

Similar letters of reference are used to designate the same parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

The coin chute Aa leads from the exterior of the box to the distributing mechanism of the box, the outer wall of the chute being formed by a plate Z). The upper portion of the chute a at the top extends in a substantially horizontal direction with a slight downward inclination, and is laterally inclined, as shown more clearly in Fig. 3, one side of said chute a at the upper portion thereof being cut away to form an opening from said coin chute into a refund chute e leading to the refund tray c on the outside of the toll box, the portion b of the wall plate o being bent out to form a guide adapted to direct an undersized coin passing out through said opening into the chute c.- The floor or ledge of the coin chute at such opening is not inclosed at the side by the plate and an undersized coin rolls off the floor into the refund chute. The top of the coin chute a at said opening has a downwardly projecting guide or flange cl formed by the upper portion of the wall plate Z) and a stop is formed by an inwardly projecting part of the bent portion b of the wall plate against which said undersized coins strike after leaving the floor of the chute, and are caused to fall directly downward along the guide A coin of proper size when inserted in the chute will pass by said opening and proceed to the interior of the box, its upper surface being engaged by the guide or flange d, but a coin of less than the proper size on reaching said opening will not be held by the fiange CZ, but will roll off the ioor of the `coin chute, strike the stop e, and be deiiected by the guide b" into the refund chute without being turned over and caused to leave its approximately vertical position.

I claim l. The combination with a toll box, of a coin chute therefor, said chute near its mouth extending in a substantially hori- Zonta] direction,-the horizontal portion of said chute being laterally inclined and open on one side, a guide adapted to support the top of a coin of predetermined size to direct the same along the floor of the chute and into the box, a refund chute having its mouth ad]- acent the opening in said laterally inclined portion of the coin chute, a coin of less than the predetermined size rolling off said floor through said opening, a. Stop against which such coin strikes, and a guide along which said coin moves into the refund chute.

2. In a toll box, the combination with a coin chute, said chute near its mouth being laterally inclined, one side of the inclined portion of said chute being cut away to form an opening through which undersized coins may roll, said chute having a downwardly projecting flange along the upper side thereof where Said opening is formed, of a refund tray, a chute communicating therewith, a guide in front of said opening adapted to divert coins into said chute, and a stop between said guide and the wall of the main chute; whereby a proper coin passes through the main chute and into the interior of the boX, being held in the chute by said flange, but a coin of less than the proper size rolls into engagement with said stop and is directed by the guide into the refund chute.

3. In a toll box, a coin chute having a laterally inclined portion near the entrance thereto, said inclined portion having its lowermost wall bent outwardly to form an opening in the side of the chute, and having the lower end of said wall bent inwardly to form a stop, said chute about said opening being provided with a flange at the top and a ledge at'the bottom thereof, and a refund chute having a mouth communicating with said ledge below said opening.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed iny name this fourth day of May A. D., 1906.

PAUL E. OSVVALD.

Witnesses L. H. JUDsoN, J. lV. NEIGHBoUns.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents Washington, D. C. 

